About

WHO IS BEHIND THE DOTS?

Connect The Dots Design is the work of me, self taught artist/ designer Úna Méabh. Before you ask, yes, it’s a double barrel Irish name and yes, I do always go by Úna Méabh. My parents couldn't decide on which name they preferred so they gave me both. I'm Belfast born and bred and work from my home studio on the outskirts of the city.

Connect The Dots Design started off as 'Doodles By UM', which came about when I started doodling the big yellow cranes of the shipyard at Belfast. Next came Belfast City Hall, then Queen’s University and before long there was a rough version of the Belfast landmarks print. The original doodle made it on to some of my first greeting cards and remains one of the best selling images to this day. I started Facebook and Instagram pages to share the images and the rest is history.

Over the next few weeks I really got in to the designing thing and created a small range of cards. My first ever sale was a wedding card bought by a lady called Vanessa who lived in Chilworth in England. I was so excited that someone had wanted to buy something I designed and I spent such a long time trying to work out how I would package it.

I gradually started to move into print design too and focused on the place that has stolen my heart - Gaeltacht Dhún na nGall. The prints were thankfully quite popular and over time I started to feel the need to have a bit more creative control in how I sold my cards and prints so I developed my own website.

Since launching my own website I have expanded the card and print ranges and also branched into elements of design. As the business (that I never intended to start) has grown I began to feel that Doodles By UM wasn't a good reflection of what it was about so after lots of hmmming and haaaaing I made the decision to give the business a makeover and so Connect The Dots Design was born.

For me Connect The Dots isn't just about the cute dotty aesthetic, which I love, it's about creativity; connecting the dots between ideas to create something new. The name fits perfectly with the business idea. Exploring creativity is not only exciting but it's such an important element of life. I'm delighted that you're here with me on this journey.